Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Lena Dunham, creator of HBO’s thirty-minute hit series “Girls,” offered her thoughts about women in entertainment during her keynote lecture at SXSW on Monday. Dunham noted that there’s been a huge gap between opportunities available for Adam Driver, a male co-star on the show, and their three female co-stars, who are often typecast.

“Our male lead, Adam Driver, has had a bang-up year in movies which could not be more deserved because he’s a ferocious genius with an incredible work ethic, and I’ve learned so much from him. But the girls are still waiting patiently for parts that are going to honor their intelligence and their ability,” she said.

Adding that “the world is ready to see Adam as a million different men,” Dunham observed that no one is interested in seeing the range of actresses Allison Williams, Zosia Mamet and Jemima Kirke. “Allison is relegated to all-American sweetheart. Zosia is asked to play more flighty nudnicks,” Dunham said.

“This is not a knock on Adam’s talent,” the writer and actress explained, “which is utterly boundless and he’s exactly the actor who should be doing all this. It’s a knock on a world where women are typecast and men can play villains, Lotharios and nerds in one calendar year and something has to change and I’m trying.”